DALLAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–June 30, 2014 – A new survey by Room Key finds that Americans aspire to engage in active pursuits when thinking about their summer vacations, but when it comes down to it, the intuitive desire to focus on leisure wins out.

According to the study, which surveyed 1,023 nationally representative Americans aged 18 and over in June, nearly one in two individuals (46 percent) expressed that a fitness-related activity would dictate their travel plans, including pursuits such as learning a new sport, improving at a sport or fulfilling an extreme goal, such as skydiving or mountain climbing.

Additionally, 57 percent of Americans would specifically choose one hotel over another based on fitness-related amenities (other than a pool) or a hotel’s location relative to outdoor activities. The availability of a fitness center ranked at the top of the list, with 23 percent saying this would drive their hotel selection, followed closely by proximity to outdoor activities such as hiking or golf, which 15 percent reported would sway their decision. The availability of fitness equipment provided by a hotel, such as a yoga mat or running shoes, in addition to the availability of on-site fitness classes, were also sought-after amenities.

Yet despite travelers’ fitness-minded aspirations, when asked how they would actually spend most of their summer vacation, the desire to simply relax and take in a destination reigned supreme. A whopping 74 percent of Americans said they would forgo fitness-oriented activities for pursuits that are more leisurely, like sightseeing (37 percent), lounging on the beach or by the pool (28 percent)or attending yoga classes or visiting the spa (8 percent). Though more active engagements such as running, biking or hiking did make the list, only 5 percent said they would plan to spend their time in this way, and fewer, just 4 percent, said golf, tennis or boating would be their vacation activities of choice.

“Though travelers may have active ambitions for their summer vacations, the desire to kick back and relax can take over, so selecting a hotel that offers both active and leisurely pursuits helps ensure an enjoyable trip, whatever mood may strike,” said Laura Pitlik, Senior Director of Brand Marketing & Communications for Room Key. “Researching a property – evaluating amenities and location – to ensure the hotel meets your expectations can be the difference between a vacation you remember fondly for years to come and one you wish had been better.”

Booking through Roomkey.com provides a unique opportunity for travelers to turn a basic task – booking a hotel – into a powerful fundraising tool. Room Key’s Stay the Night, Join the Fight ℠ campaign aims to raise a minimum of $3 million to support Stand Up To Cancer’s ® (SU2C) innovative cancer research. For every hotel stay booked through Roomkey.com, Room Key will donate $1 to SU2C. Contributions to date, through both direct donations and hotel stays booked, are approaching $375,000. Consumers can view the latest results of the campaign’s fundraising efforts at www.Roomkey.com/StaytheNight.

In addition, Room Key has launched a summer photo promotion, asking travelers: “Why Do You #StaytheNight?” Be it for a long-awaited second honeymoon or to escape the office for a few days, travelers are invited to share the inspiration for their much-needed summer hotel stays – in pictures. By submitting a photo now through July 7th, travelers will have a chance to win a $100 hotel gift card; 14 will be given away in addition to a $500 grand prize gift card. Consumers can enter a photo by uploading it to Room Key’s Facebook page (Facebook.com/Roomkey) or by using #StaytheNight when posting a picture to Twitter or Instagram. For more information and complete rules, visit www.Facebook.com/Roomkey.

The Room Key Survey was conducted by Kelton between June 11 and June 16, 2014 among 1,023 nationally representative Americans ages 18 and over, using an email invitation and an online survey. Quotas are set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the entire U.S. population ages 18 and over. Margin of error = +/-3.1 percent.

Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results.

In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample. The margin of error for any subgroups will be slightly higher.

Kelton is a leading global insights firm serving as a partner to more than 100 of the Fortune 500 and thousands of smaller companies and organizations.

Peace Through Tourism

How Travel & Tourism Can Help Restore the Balance in the Emerging New World Order

"The travel & tourism buzzword of the 21st century will be the search for balance."

That forecast was made by Imtiaz Muqbil, Executive Editor, Travel Impact Newswire, in the monthly strategic intelligence publication of PATA, the Pacific Asia Travel Association, way back in February 1999. Today, it is proving spot-on as the word "balance" resonates across all industry sectors.

Travel industry conferences seeking a speaker who can offer some unique historical hindsight, unconventional foresight and thought-provoking insight on how to rebuild and restore the balance in Asia Pacific travel & tourism can email Imtiaz Muqbil by clicking here.

There Can Be No Sustainability Without Spirituality

The New World Order will be dominated by a resurgence of spirituality.

Imtiaz Muqbil claims to be the world's only travel journalist to have visited the Holy Spots of all the major world religions -- Lumbhini, Bodhgaya, Varanasi, Nalanda, Jerusalem, Vatican City, Amritsar, Makkah, Madinah, Najaf and Karbala, as well as religious spots such as Angkor Wat, Bagan, Shwedagon Pagoda, Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Temple of The Tooth, Somnath Temple, Samarkand, Bukhara and many other great mosques, shrines, temples and cathedrals worldwide.

Sustainability, ecotourism and health & wellness travel have all become so 'yesterday'. Prepare for the new generation of travel in the New World Order and raise the bar of your next conference, management forum or seminar by hearing Imtiaz Muqbil's thoughts on this unmatched game- and life-changing experience.

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Secrets of Thailand's Tourism Success

Why the Amazing Kingdom is notching up record-breaking arrivals, and what challenges it faces next

The Thai tourism industry has become by far the Kingdom's most successful service sector, one of its leading job-creators and foreign exchange-earners. Behind this success lies a fascinating history of great branding campaigns, policy and regulatory changes, budgetary bunfights, strategic thinking and influence of Royal events.

But this success has now bred a new set of management challenges that may be more difficult to overcome.

Travel Impact Newswire Executive Editor Imtiaz Muqbil has been monitoring the pulse of the Thai travel industry full-time since 1981. Industry conferences and management meetings wishing to benefit from a treasure trove of insights and hindsights on one of the world's great tourism success stories can drop an email here: imtiaz@travel-impact-newswire.com.

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The Rise of the Whistle-Blowers

For 15 years (January 1997-July 2012), Imtiaz Muqbil penned a hard-hitting fortnightly column called “Soul-Searching” in the so-called “newspaper you can trust”. In July 2012, the column was gagged, with no explanation.

Over the years, four columns had explicitly forecast the rise of whistle-blowers -- a prediction now coming 100% true. Read the four columns by clicking on the links below.

Too Bad Your Ad Is Not in This Spot

Space available for unique ads that demonstrate commitment to helping physically-challenged people, building global peace, improving social and cultural cohesion, providing opportunities for the under-privileged, alleviating poverty and combatting global injustice & corruption.

If your product is not meeting any of the above goals, please advertise elsewhere.

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News Vs Noise

A Unique Course for Travel & Tourism Communicators In The Internet Era

By far the vast majority of media communications in the travel industry is boring, banal and bland. The same way it has been for the last 30 years.

Travel Impact Newswire Executive Editor Imtiaz Muqbil has designed a special communications course to help upgrade both the context and the content of industry media material, and make it more interesting, readable and, most important, relevant.